Everton 0 - Arsenal 1: Up, up and away

FOR much of the season Arsenal had played as if pleading to be put out of their misery. It serves as testimony to the transformation Arsene Wenger has instigated that now they will not want the campaign to end.

A sixth straight Premier League victory came courtesy of Thomas Vermaelen’s early header, though the magnitude of a hard-fought success only became truly apparent after the final whistle with news of events at White Hart Lane and the Etihad.

From finding themselves 12 points adrift of Tottenham on February 1, Wenger has now seen his rejuvenated side leapfrog their neighbours into third place and the semblance of a smile he wore here betrayed his delight at a startling turnaround.

If the momentum Arsenal boast is not enough to leave Spurs and also Chelsea, now six points in arrears, fretting, then the good fortune which favoured the visitors last night suggests that they will not relinquish their advantage.

Everton paid for a dreadful, squalid opening passage devoid of all the things they normally do so well. But they eased their way back into the contest and should have been rewarded with an equaliser after half an hour.

You have seen a side of us that usually people don’t know

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger

That assistant-linesman John Flynn ridiculously – and wrongly – adjudged Royston Drenthe to be offside as he dispatched a chance created by Nikica Jelavic and Tim Cahill was an error that left Everton manager David Moyes seething long after the final whistle.

“It was a goal,” said Moyes. “There were five onsides that were given offside tonight and we have had a raw deal in the last few games because there have been some really poor decisions.

“You can get one decision wrong, but five? That is really poor.”

Arsenal had started like an express train and created four clear-cut chances in the opening 10 minutes.

Aaron Ramsey fired high and wide after Robin van Persie’s unselfish headed knock-down to Tomas Rosicky’s cross had left his team-mate in acres of space.

That the breakthrough arrived not through dazzling interplay but from a set-piece will drive Moyes to distraction.

Van Persie’s corner was well delivered, but Vermaelen cannot have expected to rise above Belgium team-mate Marouane Fellaini quite so easily and head home after eight minutes.

Wenger must have presumed it would only be a matter of how many his team won by. But Arsenal’s failure to glean a second goal allowed Everton to press forward in search of parity.

Ultimately the Gunners hung on, allowing Wenger to marvel at his players’ fortitude afterwards when he would have barely been able to contain his fury had they shipped an equaliser.

“You have seen a side of us that usually people don’t know,” said Wenger, who saw Van Persie thud a shot on to Tim Howard’s post in a rare raid after the break.

“We were resilient, focused and showed an absolute desire to defend – but it was the only way to get a result tonight.

“It is good to know we can do that. We didn’t panic and we defended well on crosses which is not usually our strong point.

“We will need to keep that going because I remember in some press conferences at the start of the season, I was asked would we stay up? Where we came from, we know what suffering is.”